"I hope they hit 'em," exclaimed Leon fervently.
There were many dug-outs along the line of the trench. Some of them were shell-proof and were fifteen to twenty feet below the surface of the ground; the entrance to these was through a door, level with the floor of the trench. A stairway, just wide enough to permit one man to pass, led down to them. The roofs were reinforced with huge timbers and so strongly were they constructed that most of them were intact, despite the heavy bombardment to which they had been subjected.
"Have you seen these dug-outs?" Leon inquired of Jacques.
"No, I haven't."
"Come along then and I'll show them to you," exclaimed Leon. "Some of them are regular palaces."
"I doubt that," laughed Jacques as the two boys set out together.
They inspected a dug-out similar to the one described above. Then they discovered others, larger but only slightly lower than the trenches.
"Look at them," exclaimed Leon. "They must have used these for living quarters when things were quiet."
"I guess they did," agreed Jacques. "If they're all like this they're pretty good size too; this one must be six feet wide and nearly thirty feet long."
"See those logs on the ceiling; they're a foot in diameter at least."